Why Marketing needs to think about Cyber Security

Before digital marketing became the prevalent method of external brand communication, the only way someone could harm your company was if they vandalized one of your billboards with permanent marker or spray paint. But nowadays in the in the online world, the stakes are much higher, and cyber security has become a major issue in the commercial sphere.

In the online world, your brand is under constant threat of being attacked by anyone, from your competitors looking to undermine your authority in the industry, all the way to a disgruntled customer with too much time on their hands. With that in mind, let’s take a look at why marketing needs to prioritize cyber security and how to protect their brand.

Your brand reputation is at stake

First things first, it’s important to understand just how much is at stake when it comes to cyber security. In the oversaturated local and global markets where customers are constantly bombarded with new products and emerging companies, brand reputation, awareness, and recognition are everything. You cannot afford to lose customer loyalty by any degree, or to have your reputation in the market jeopardized if you are to stay in the game long term.

According to Marketingmag, cyberattacks can be so devastating that they can severely limit your opportunity to build brand affinity, customer loyalty and trust, and ultimately sell your services and products. In turn, a data breach could not only cost you your reputation, but it can cripple your business as well if the damage is not minimized immediately.

Retaining a loyal customer pool

If you want to succeed, always think of the bottom line. And the bottom line is your loyal customer pool and how they react to and interact with your brand. Moreover, the bottom line is also your ability to attract new customers and build your business, all of which becomes uncertain in case of a cyberattack. In fact, a survey conducted in 2014 stated that 43% of the companies experienced some form of data breach, and that the causal effect can be seen impacting the customers, ultimately leading to a loss in loyal customers who decided to take their business elsewhere.

This is why marketing needs to shift its mindset from “if it happens” to “when it happens” and build a strong plan of attack, or rather defense, that will stop a malicious attack dead in its tracks and prevent possibly disastrous consequences. However, this requires the implementation of a custom-build security protocol, and not any cookie-cutter solution.

Not all security systems were built the same

The internet offers endless possibilities, both for the customers, and the companies supplying the demand. In the modern world, it seems that the web holds all the answers to our questions. However, where there are endless possibilities for growth, there are endless possibilities for loss as well. This is why marketers need to think about conducting in-depth vulnerability scans in order to create a custom security solution that will give an answer and a long-term solution for the specific needs of their company.

Template frameworks are unreliable in the modern world for a number of reasons, and the fact that it only takes one cyberattack to put countless brands using the same solution in jeopardy is enough to make you stay clear of them. Remember, that your brand is unique, and as such, it needs to have a unique security framework in place if preventing data breaches is your goal.

Patching all security holes

A cyberattack can come from any direction, and it can target almost any part of your business that has an electrical circuit. This makes the task of finding weak points in your system and patching them up promptly, that more difficult. For this reason, CMOs must work closely with the Chief Information Security Officer in finding weak links and introducing contemporary security measures across the board.

Some of the tasks include a thorough inspection of all touch points the brand has with customer retention and acquisition. Every channel of communication, both internal and external must be scrutinized and analyzed for weaknesses. This includes examining every marketing process, from personnel handling sensitive data, to software security.

If an attack does occur and your defenses do crumble, however, don’t keep it a secret.

Transparency is your best strategy

When a data breach has occurred, no matter the scale of the attack and no matter how great the damage is, you need to execute transparency on all fronts, making sure your customers are notified and kept up to date with the latest developments. More importantly, you want to keep a clear line of communication open with those who were affected, and supply the information on how your customers and clients can best protect themselves and mitigate the damage on their end.

This is where CMOs need to support the IT department trying to solve the problem backstage by communicating with the customers, and rebuilding brand loyalty and reputation. For this reason, make sure customer service is working overtime to remain in control of the situation. An official apology will also go a long way in repairing the damage done to your brand image.

Cyber security in the modern, online world, is not something to be taken lightly. In fact, it is the duty of the marketing department as the gatekeepers and frontline “soldiers” to implement a strong security framework and damage control strategy that will swiftly and effectively deal with any malicious attack.